AutoPartsAsia | AUGUST 2017 | 55Operators Confederation of India
(BOCI), said, “The core objective
of BOCI is to promote health,
happiness and economic prosperity
of the society by providing safe,
smart, sustainable and integrated
transport. That’s why we have tried
to bring the authorities concerned,
operators, OEMs, institutions, and
service providers on this platform
through this event. In India, around
90 percent population cannot afford
to own cars, so we need to promote
public transport. India has only 15
lakh buses for a population of over
100 crore, whereas China has 1.25
crore buses for public transportation,”
he said.
About the challenges of the bus
operators in India Patwardhan said,
“We have a few short-term and
long-term challenges. We have
been demanding for one nation, one
tax and one permit for smooth bus
transport business. The country is
building excellent highways but due
to speed governors we cannot speed
up our buses above 80 km/ hour,
so we request the government to
increase speed limit to 125 km/hour,
which will fulfil the required safety
features, and to give All-India permit
for sleeper coaches.”
Alexander Mastrovito, Head of
Sustainable Transports Solutions,
Scania (Hong Kong) Ltd, welcomed
the government initiatives for bio-
gas buses. There has to be a strong
approach to develop infrastructure
to make non-fossil fuel viable. “Right
now it will be difficult to compete
with prices of diesel and petrol as
infrastructure is already there to
refill the vehicle. That is why you
need partnership with local bodies,”
Mastrovito said.
Almost all leading OEMs like Tata
Motors, Ashok Leyland, Mahindra and
Mahindra, Volvo Eicher, Scania, and
other companies like, MRF, Michelin,
TVS Mobility Solution participated in
the show.
Mahindra and Mahindra displayed
electric cars and school vans and a
newly- launched bus. In the electric
segment, the company displayed
its e2o Plus P6 and e Super Cargo
Van that can be fully charged in
8.30 hours, and Supro that has a
72V battery pack for long-life and
with maintenance-free lithium-ion
batteries. It can carry 600 kg load.
“We are here to create awareness
among operators about our electric
cars,” a Mahindra executive said.
In the bus segment, the company
displayed its new launch Comfio.
“We are displaying Comfio which
offers more comfort to passengers,
ideally for office staff and tourists.
This bus comes with a wider body
and bigger leg room which make
long journeys more comfortable. It
is BS-IV compatible and fitted with
a CRD engine,” Sabdeep Ghule,
Deputy General Manager, Product
Management, Mahindra and
Mahindra, said.The company is also developing
an electric vehicle on the same
platform. It will be available from
next year. “We are converting our
entire range with electric buses,”
he said.
Ghule also said that the company’s
school buses comply with all
guidelines and rules of the local
authorities. He believes that once
the Bus Body Code is enforced
there will be consolidations in
the segment. “The response is
quite good, many leads are being
generated,” he said.
PEE AAR Exim, along with its Italian
partner SPAL, displayed a set of
electric fans which will replace
hydraulic fan in buses. According to
Pankaj Rustagi, Managing director,
PEE AAR EXIM, “conventional
hydraulic fans take almost 18 kW
power from the engine. We have
removed the existing system with our
new technology and this is controlledby a separate ECU. This takes 1.5 kw
power and saves eight to ten percent
fuel. For every model, there will be
different design. Total cost of the
installation of the electric fan system
varies from Rs1.5 lakh to Rs3.5 lakh,
Rustagi said.
KPIT Technologies showcased its bus
intelligence system which enables
bus transport authorities to reduce
response time to emergencies and
enhance operating efficiency with
features such as automatic vehicle
location, vehicle health monitoring
and diagnostics. These features will
be managed by the back-end support
offered by KPIT at the depot control
using cloud technology and remotediagnostics. The company also
displayed the extended application
for school buses.
Force Motors displayed its new
seven-seater van, Traveller CR V16,
for urban segment. The company’s
new edition of Cruiser was also the
main attraction of the booth. The
cruiser comes with power steering
and A/C and is BS-IV compliant.
Apart from the expo, the two-day
conference covered a wide range of
topics.^